The Chuadanga district unit of the 11-party alliance has held a protest march and submitted a memorandum demanding an end to the gas crisis, severe load-shedding, power price hikes, the collection of “phantom” bills and rising prices of daily essentials.
The memorandum was submitted to the prime minister through the district administration on Thursday (6 August). Beforehand, a protest march and programme was held in front of the Chuadanga deputy commissioner’s office.
The memorandum said the severe gas crisis and load-shedding across the country were badly disrupting people’s normal lives, industrial production and trade. Along with repeated power price hikes and the collection of “phantom” bills, this was causing people extreme suffering. It also said that with the prices of rice, pulses, oil and other essentials moving beyond ordinary people’s purchasing power, working-class and lower-middle-class families were spending their days in acute crisis.
Those present at the submission included Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami district secretary Advocate Asaduzzaman, National Citizen Party member-secretary Alamgir Hossain, Khelafat Majlis district secretary Hafez Maulana Shafiqul Islam, Jamaat district youth wing president Nur Mohammad Hussain Tipu, Talimul Quran wing president Maulana Mohiuddin, former district Amir Anwarul Haque Malik, legal affairs secretary Darus Salam, and Chuadanga municipal Amir Advocate Hasibul Islam, among other leaders.
Addressing the pre-submission rally, district secretary Advocate Asaduzzaman said the power and gas crisis had created extreme suffering for industry, agriculture and public life. Ordinary consumers were also victims of “phantom” electricity and gas bills, creating extra economic pressure on people, he said, adding that the recent power price rise had deepened public suffering. He demanded that uninterrupted power and gas supply be ensured immediately, effective steps be taken to stop “phantom” bills, the increased power prices be withdrawn, and strict measures be taken to control the market for essentials.
Speakers also alleged that although such causes had made life miserable for lower- and middle-income people, the government had failed to take effective steps. They said effective measures were needed immediately to ease public suffering. From the rally, the 11-party alliance leaders called on the government to take swift, effective steps to resolve the energy crisis, address power price and billing problems, control the prices of essentials and improve the law-and-order situation. They also warned that if the people’s demands were not implemented quickly, tougher programmes would be announced in future.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report